Check Your Pets For Parasites

The Pet Column

May 14, 1989|By JANEY SCHADLICH

Most intestinal parasites or "worms" are host-specific. This means that although round, hook, whip and tapeworms are called the same names in both dogs and cats, each host animal actually maintains its own separate species of these parasites.

Although it occurs infrequently, humans do get round and hookworms from animals. Because we aren't natural hosts to these parasites, invading larvae may act abnormally by embedding themselves in vital organs. Most affected are children who play in dirt (where a dog or cat has dropped feces) and put their fingers in their mouths or rubbed their eyes or noses before washing their hands. Hookworms can penetrate skin surfaces, so beware of going barefoot outdoors.

According to Dr. Sue Stiff of Pine Meadow Veterinary Hospital in Tabb, virtually all dogs are born with roundworms. (The incidence in cats is much lower.) Good dog breeders worm females a month before breeding. Despite this precaution, the mother still can infect her offspring with roundworms because some larvae lie dormant in her muscle tissue and become active only after the dog becomes pregnant.

A nursing female dog infested with hookworms also can pass these larvae to her pups through her milk. When pups are about 3 weeks old they should receive their first wormings; their mother needs re-worming at the same time.

When you take your pet to a veterinarian for its first physical exam, it will be checked for worms. In order to ensure the animal's continued good health, you must allow the vet to examine the animal's stool for worms every 4 to 6 months.

Each major specie of intestinal parasite has a different life cycle; the roundworm's is the most complex. "Roundworms are passed as eggs in dog and cat feces, and when they drop to the ground, the eggs molt into larvae," says Stiff. "Each dog or cat that comes into contact with its own specie's infested stool ingests some of the larvae, and the parasites begin their journey from the new host's stomach, to the bloodstream, then on to its heart and lungs. At this point, the animal gags, coughs up and then re-ingests the larvae so that they end up once more in the stomach and intestines where they mature and produce more eggs."

Although you can see the long, spaghettilike roundworms in an animal's stool, hook and whipworms are invisible to the naked eye. Hookworm larvae can either be ingested or passed through the skin of the host, but unlike round worms, these parasites complete their life cycles in the animal's intestines.

Tapeworms enter animals through fleas, but this parasite's life cycle also begins in animal feces. "The tapeworm packet ruptures when the stool is dropped," says Stiff. "Then the flea eats the larvae, which further develops inside the insect. Cats and dogs get tapeworms by swallowing (while biting or licking their fur) the intermediary flea host. These worms are visible in an animal's stool and look like grains of rice."

All intestinal parasites cause dull coats and weight loss. Some also cause anemia and diarrhea, often with bloody stools. Infested animals become tired and listless, and roundworms make pets cough or vomit. A potbelly on a pup or kitten is a good indication of roundworm infestation. Because tapeworms can cause inflammation of rectal tissues, animals sometimes scoot their behinds across lawns or carpets.

For a proper stool analysis, bring your veterinarian a sample of your pet's feces (plastic bags specifically designed to contain these are available at the vet's office). Worming usually consists of two visits, the first for diagnosis and initial treatment, then a follow-up treatment that destroys any remaining larvae two to four weeks later.

Once your pet is wormed, prevent immediate reinfestation by scooping up and disposing of all feces outdoors and from the litter box. For the next three weeks, change litter boxes daily and wash them out with a mild bleach and water solution. Always wash your hands after disposing of fecal material even if you don't actually touch it.

Schadlich, a Newport News pet fancier, uses local experts in preparing this column. If you have any questions you can write her in care of Features Department, MP1203, Daily Press, 7505 Warwick Blvd., Newport News 23607.